Hope is a foreign feeling for the Detroit Lions. Perpetually stuck in limbo with little reason for more than muted optimism, things haven’t been easy riding for the Lions over the last, well, forever. With no more than just three playoff appearances to show this century – and three wildcard losses to boot – the Lions have been stuck in a perpetual cycle of disappointment. But there is genuine hope in Detroit for the first time in a while. And for good reason.
The 2021 season was an exercise in patience for the Lions. Tasked with finding cohesion between a new general manager, a new head coach, a new starting quarterback for the first time in over a decade, and a roster full of fresh faces would be a tall task. There wasn’t much expectation outside of the building and within the media – the Lions were diving head first into a rebuild.
On the surface, things were tough going. The Lions started the season 0-8 and surpassed just 20 points once in that period – the first game of the season against the San Francisco 49ers – and averaged a losing deficit of 13.75 points, essentially two touchdowns. There were some ugly blowouts like the 6-44 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles, but there were closely fought losses against the likes of the Baltimore Ravens and Minnesota Vikings. There were positive takeaways.
And as the season wore on, the Lions started to find that sought-after cohesion. The team showed the determination and grit that Dan Campbell desperately wanted. Jared Goff looked far more comfortable too. In his final five starts of the season, Goff completed 69.57 percent of his passes, threw 11 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions while finding himself in the top 15 of quarterback EPA – in the same ballpark as guys like Derek Carr and Dak Prescott. That’s not to say that he can consistently be as good as either guy, but there’s hope.
Truthfully, Goff and former offensive coordinator Anthony Lynn were never the best fit. And if new OC Ben Johnson can build a playbook heavily based on concepts Goff feels comfortable with, then they’re dancing. With an abundance of weapons and a forceful offensive line, Goff is in a good position to build on his strong end to 2021. It might even put him in line for a second, potentially short-term contract, with the Lions.
And even if it doesn’t, the Lions are in good stead. The offensive line was a big reason for Goff’s improvement down the stretch. They made sure he was pressured on just 27 percent of his dropbacks in those five games, and there’s every reason to believe it’ll be a better unit in 2022 and beyond, partly thanks to the return of Frank Ragnow.
It also helps that Goff has a talented supporting cast as well. He built a real connection with Amon-Ra St. Brown in 2021 but also has players like T.J. Hockenson and D’Andre Swift on the roster, as well as a free agent signing D.J. Chark, and first-round pick Jameson Williams on the team. If things don’t work out well with Goff, the next quarterback in line will walk into a prime position.
But things are currently heading in the right direction. Dan Campbell has the team ready to bite the head off a snake for him, the front office drafted well, and there’s enough talent on the roster to make a run for a Wildcard berth if everything breaks just right. Of course, that’s the best-case scenario, but the fact that it’s even a realistic scenario for a team that won 3 games in 2021 is fascinating.
All of this without mentioning a defense that will be hoping to improve in 2022. The Lions drafted Aidan Hutchinson with the second overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft, and he’ll likely make an instant impact as an all-around edge defender. If the defense wants to improve, that’ll need to happen. The defensive line has all the tools to be a force, but the secondary still has question marks – especially at cornerback.
Nevertheless the Lions still have every right to be hopeful, even if the hope is that they’ll win 6 or 7 games and continue to build a strong foundation. It’s been too long since the Lions were relevant in the NFL. It’s been six years since the Lions played in a postseason game, and it might be another year until we see that, but there’s something brewing at Ford Field.
-Thomas Valentine
Twitter: @tvalentinesport
Photo: Maize & Blue Nation. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic license.